July Issue of The American Journal of Gastroenterology Includes Analysis of Psychological Comorbidities and Irritable Bowel Syndrome Prognosis

The July issue of The American Journal of Gastroenterology includes an examination of psychological comorbidities, such as anxiety, depression, somatic symptom disorder, perceived stress, and gastrointestinal symptom-specific anxiety, and the prognosis of individuals with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In addition, this issue features clinical research and reviews on cirrhosis, gastroesophageal reflux disease, pediatrics, celiac disease, probiotics, GI quality improvement, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, and more.

The three articles highlighted below include the article on psychological comorbidities and IBS, a review examining the potential for the use of nutrient drinking tests to identify functional dyspepsia, and a study on the efficacy of probiotics in treating young children with acute gastroenteritis with varying durations and frequencies of diarrhea. Access to any articles from this issue, or past issues, is available upon request. The College is also able to connect members of the press with study authors or outside experts who can comment on the articles.

Impact of Psychological Comorbidity on the Prognosis of Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Goodoory, et al.

IBS affects ~5-10% of the US population and is not well-understood but there is evidence that disordered communication between the gut and the brain is involved. In this study, the authors found that psychological comorbidities were present in more than two-thirds of participants and IBS symptom severity increased significantly when an even higher number of psychological comorbidities were present. This suggests that formal psychological assessment and therapies for patients with high psychological burden may improve IBS prognosis.

Nutrient Drinking Test as Biomarker in Functional Dyspepsia
Scarpellini, et al.

In a review of studies involving nutrient drinking tests, the authors of this article found that patients with functional dyspepsia ingest significant less volume and experience a significantly faster rise of satiation and other dyspeptic symptoms, compared with healthy subjects. This suggests that satiety drinking tests may be more effective than rapid water/water load, rapid nutrient, or slow nutrient drink tests in evaluating patients with functional dyspepsia.

Association Between Diarrhea Duration and Severity and Probiotic Efficacy in Children With Acute Gastroenteritis
Schnadower, et al.

In a study of children aged 3- to 48-months with acute gastroenteritis, diarrhea duration and frequency prior to probiotic therapy were not associated with the presence or absence of beneficial effects of the probiotics within a two-week period. This differs from earlier studies which suggest that symptom severity may play a role, though evidence was limited and inconsistent in the prior studies.

 

About the American College of Gastroenterology
Founded in 1932, the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) is an organization with an international membership of over 16,000 individuals from 86 countries. The College’s vision is to be the preeminent professional organization that champions the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of digestive disorders, serving as a beacon to guide the delivery of the highest quality, compassionate, and evidence-based patient care. The mission of the College is to enhance the ability of our members to provide world class care to patients with digestive disorders and advance the profession through excellence and innovation based upon the pillars of Patient Care, Education, Scientific Investigation, Advocacy and Practice Management. www.gi.org

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